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Coca-Cola Testing RFID on Coke Machines

Posted June 22, 2009

Coca-Cola has begun beta-testing an RFID-enabled drink dispenser that the company claims will transform the soft drink dispensing industry, by providing more than 100 drink options from a single machine. The machine, known as Freestyle, utilizes RFID technology to identify 30 or more cartridges, determine the quantity of flavoring inside each, and transmit data back to Coca-Cola indicating which drinks are being consumed, and when.

“We consider Freestyle nothing short of a revolution in the fountain dispenser business,” says Ray Crockett, Coca-Cola’s director of communications. The system not only offers consumers a vast choice of Coca-Cola beverages, he notes—from sodas to flavored waters—it also provides the company with real-time insight into what is happening in restaurants across the United States.